Asian Forest Sanctuary - Clouded Leopards

April 17th, 2010.

I didn't know that Point Defiance Zoo got clouded leopards? When did they acquire them?

They acquired a pair of 8-month olds from Thailand, and they have only been on exhibit for less than a week. If you go to the Point Defiance Zoo thread, in the main forum section of ZooChat, I posted at least one or two articles detailing the zoo's efforts to breed the cats. There should soon be 6 at the zoo, but only 2 will be on exhibit at any one time.

Is this an indoor viewing area with an additional, more natural looking habitat else where?

This is actually the official quarantine area for the cats, and it is also their full exhibit for the next year of their lives. A $1 million "Cats of the Canopy" exhibit is being constructed, and it is due to open in 2011, but these young cats will have to live indoors until that time. Having said that, the Asian Forest Sanctuary at the Point Defiance Zoo does have a series of enclosures where animals rotate through on any given day, and so perhaps the zoo has plans to incorporate their clouded leopards into that schedule before 2011. That last part is only my personal speculation...